Thermal and EMC design in high-speed digital electronics systems has become a battle of conflicting requirements. Faster switching has led to increased electromagnetic (EM) emissions due to the extended bandwidth of signals. Higher-density components are consuming more power, generating increased EM fields and more heat. Electronics equipment must comply with radiation limits … [Read more...]
Thermal joint conductance for graphite materials
The heat flow across a metal/interstitial elastic-layer/metal joint is a very important problem in many microelectronic applications. It is generally known that when two surfaces are brought together, intimate solid-to-solid contact occurs only at discrete parts of the interface. Therefore, the actual contact area of pressed surfaces represents a very small fraction of the … [Read more...]
Thermal Issues in GaAs Analog RF Devices
Wireless communication and advanced radar systems require circuitry that can operate at frequencies greater than 2 GHz and at high power levels. Analog gallium arsenide (GaAs) semiconductors are frequently used in these applications and present additional challenges for thermal engineers compared to silicon semiconductors. Whereas thermal characterization modeling and … [Read more...]
Thermomechanical stress modeling in microelectronics and photonics
Thermomechanical stresses and deformations are the major contributors to malfunctions of, and failures in, microelectronics and photonics devices, packages and systems. In microelectronics, the most serious consequences of the elevated thermal stresses are usually associated with mechanical (structural) failures (e.g., ductile rupture, brittle fracture, failures due to fatigue, … [Read more...]
The treacherous streams
During the development of a telecommunications product, an unpredictable phenomenon of air streams within the maze of cards and module was encountered. It could only be compared to suddenly confronting powerful inner streams in a calm ocean. Unlike the ocean, however, these streams appeared in a man-made machine. It seemed as if someone had rewritten the laws of physics. It was … [Read more...]
